The Tradition of Athletes Biting Their Olympic Medals

Now that gold, silver and bronze medals have begun to be awarded at the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympic games, there is a good chance that you’ll see the athletes putting them into their mouths as they attempt to take a bite out of them. In fact, the act of biting down on the recently won medal has become such a common event that McDonald’s even has a commercial airing which highlights this practice. That begs the question, what is the history behind this tradition?

The act of biting down on a coin seems to be a relic of earlier times when coins were actually made of pure gold and silver. Biting down on a coin was a quick and easy way to confirm whether it was real or counterfeit. Si

2 Responses to The Tradition of Athletes Biting Their Olympic Medals

It would more effective if they shoot a moving collage showing the athelete going through his rigorous training moves, then a shot of his actual event where he won, followed by him on the victory stand with the medal around his neck. This puts things in perspective and provides a human connect.